


Even If We Can't Find Heaven

by LadyShadowphyre



Series: tumblr prompt basket [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Boy King Sam Winchester, Castiel just wants to be loved, Fantasy AU, Knight Prince Dean Winchester, Lilith mention, M/M, Michael is a paranoid king, Not Actually Rulers of Hell, Prince Gabriel the Messenger, Ruby mention, The Author Regrets Nothing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-02
Packaged: 2019-02-09 15:58:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12891447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyShadowphyre/pseuds/LadyShadowphyre
Summary: Prince Castiel of Ter'd'Ange was told to expect a ruthless, power-hungry manipulator in the Boy King of Ziemia and Tartarus when he was sent as part of the delegation to renegotiate the treaties at King Michael's behest, and to secretly secure the "rescue" of King Samuel's displaced older brother Prince Dean. What he found was something very different, and might even prove to be the salvation he had long since stopped hoping for.





	Even If We Can't Find Heaven

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Zetal (Rodinia)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rodinia/gifts).



> For the Kiss Prompt #12: Kiss On The Nose
> 
> This ended up being a lot longer than a drabble. Oops?

**T** HEY CALLED HIM the Boy King, even now that he was a man. Samuel was the second son of the House of Winchester, left mostly to his studies and to hold the throne in trust during the war with Tartarus in the wake of Queen Mary’s death by a Tartaran Prince, and had never sought the throne for himself until it was thrust upon him by the death of King John. His elder brother had been captured and held prisoner by the Queen of Tartarus as leverage to make a new alliance marriage between the House of Winchester and the House of Campbell in hopes of giving Tartarus ultimate control over the Kingdom of Ziemia and, from there, a shot at challenging King Michael of Ter’d’Ange. Samuel was young, they thought, and surely easy enough to manipulate, and once the bonds of matrimony were set between him and Queen Lilith’s sister Ruby it would not matter if the elder son reclaimed the Ziemian throne for a time until another “accident” could be arranged.

They had underestimated King Samuel and his devotion to his older brother, as they had underestimated his intelligence. The battle that was fought for the soul of Prince Dean was fierce and ruthless and shed very little blood on either side. In the end, Queen Lilith lay dead at King Samuel’s feet and the scion of both House Winchester and House Campbell assumed the throne of Tartarus by right of conquest to cement his right of succession. Upon his release, Prince Dean had surprised everyone by kneeling at his younger brother’s feet and loudly swearing fealty to Samuel, King of Ziemia and Tartarus, as his Knight and champion.

All of this had been thoroughly explained to Prince Castiel, youngest brother of the King of Ter’d’Ange, when he had been selected as emissary from their kingdom to the fledgeling empire ruled by the ruthless Boy King. Ostensibly, he was being sent as support to Prince Gabriel, who was to renegotiate the treaties between Ter’d’Ange and both Ziemia and Tartarus now that the balances of power had been shaken up so badly. In reality, Michael had told him in confidence, he was to ingratiate himself with the elder brother to discover what sorcery held him bound so closely to King Samuel’s rule and, if needed, raise him from whatever perdition he was trapped within and bring him to Ter’d’Ange for sanctuary and healing until he was strong enough to reclaim Ziemia’s throne from the Boy King. Michael all too well remembered the treachery of his own younger brother, who had once been the Light of Ter’d’Ange and whose name was no longer spoken, and feared that the bloody beginning to King Samuel’s rule showed a similar treachery at work. And so Castiel had prepared himself for a ruler hungry for power, cold and calculating and quick with a silver tongue that dripped poisoned honey and empty promises.

He was not prepared for the reality. No amount of rumor or speculation could prepare him for the obvious devotion between King Samuel and Prince Dean, for the subtle deference the King offered to his older brother despite their respective positions. He was not prepared for the shadows concealed beneath strangely mesmerizing eyes, for the subtle flinch at their corners every time someone addressed him as “King” or “Majesty”. And he was not prepared for how, once the meeting was carried into King Samuel’s private offices, the brothers revealed to Castiel and Gabriel that they were all too aware of the real purpose of this visit.

“I told Dean no one would believe that he’d willingly give up the throne to his younger brother,” King Samuel -  _Sam,_  he insisted - said with a grimace as he slumped into one of the chairs by the fireplace, deliberately avoiding the more official seat behind the ornate desk. “And after what I did to get Dean back, I’m hardly going to be surprised that our neighbors are more than a little nervous about having me on either throne, never mind both.”

“If you know, then why do you retain the throne in place of your brother?” Castiel couldn’t help but ask.

“‘Cause I don’t want it,” Dean said, all blunt manners and gruff irritation. He crossed his arms, looming beside his seated brother and very much making him look the protective older sibling. It sent a stab of jealousy through Castiel - Michael had never been so protective of any of his siblings - and it took a moment for him to wrestle it down enough to pay attention to the Prince’s words. “Dad may have expected me to take the throne when he died, but I’ve always known I don’t have the head for the crown, not like I need to. Give me an army to lead and a battle to fight, I’m good, but looking after a kingdom at peace is way more Sammy’s strong suit than mine.”

“You call this a kingdom at peace?” Gabriel asked, raising his eyebrows. “He killed the Queen of Tartarus in single combat after ripping through all four Princes and at least two Knights. Takeovers don’t get much more hostile than that, kiddo.”

“There’s not a whole lot I wouldn’t do for my brother,” Sam said quietly. Castiel was struck again by the lines of exhaustion tugging around his eyes. “I will not forsake the people of Ziemia for an empty promise that bitch had no intention of honoring. I doubt Dean would have forgiven me if I had let myself be bound to Lilith’s she-demon sister for his sake.”

“I would have eventually,” Dean protested, though he looked drawn and haunted. The scenario had likely played out in his nightmares over the course of his captivity. “Might have taken a while in between fighting off assassination attempts, but assuming we both survived long enough I’d have forgiven you.”

“Then I’ll be grateful Ruby was too ambitious to play the long game and saved us the trouble, even if she did miscalculate her own charms,” Sam returned with a huff. Castiel and Gabriel exchanged glances; the pieces were fitting together in an interesting way that had the wheels in Castiel’s head turning with the possibilities.

Apparently Gabriel was thinking along the same lines, because he coughed once to draw the attention of the King and Prince, then said, “Look, Michael’s not just going to accept my word that things are good between you two. After Luc’s betrayal, he’s been... reserved at best with the rest of us. Not much he can do to me since I’m still in direct line of succession, but he’s been pretty harsh on Cassie, here.”

“Harsh?” Sam echoed, sitting up straighter in his seat at looking Castiel over more closely. Searching for the signs that Castiel had taken great pains to hide, he realized, and lowered his eyes even as he tilted his head enough for his hair to fall away from the small tattoo behind his ear. He heard the twin intakes of breath as King and Prince both saw the black winged dagger, the mark of one of Ter’d’Ange’s fabled Seraphim, the Crown’s most elite soldiers, spymasters and assassins. “I see. Your task here?”

“To use the cover of Gabriel’s negotiations to ascertain what sorcery had been employed to control Prince Dean and, if possible, bring him to Ter’d’Ange to be broken of that sorcery so that he might regain the crown of Ziemia with the military backing of Ter’d’Ange,” Castiel recited flatly. There was a swish of metal against leather and a flurry of movement by the chair, but Castiel did not raise his eyes. “It was a fool’s mission, even if you had been the power-hungry overlord Michael believes you to be, and all the more so now that I have seen the truth.”

“And what truth do you think you’ve seen that could make you back down from your King’s plot to turn me into a puppet of Ter’d’Ange,  _Seraphim_?” Dean growled. Castiel risked a glance upwards and had to control a flinch. Dean’s thunderous expression was to be expected, but Sam’s weary resignation cut at Castiel’s battered heart much more sharply. He swallowed.

“There is no sorcery at work save for the love shared between you both,” he said quietly. “It’s a love that Michael has forgotten how to feel, would have beaten out of the rest of us if he could, and it is why my mission was doomed to fail from the start.” He hesitated, then lowered himself to one knee, bowing his head before the brothers. “I submit myself to your mercy, in whatever form that may take.”

“Why?” Sam asked softly. “Why tell us any of this? You could have easily kept your own council and gone back without ever letting on, so why explain?”

“Castiel is already on thin ice with Michael,” Gabriel explained, his voice far more sober than Castiel could remember hearing it. “He has too much heart to embrace the Seraphim mentality, and he questions and doubts his orders when they don’t make sense despite Naomi’s ‘best’ efforts. If he returned to Ter’d’Ange empty-handed with only talk of brotherly love, Michael might well have him turned over to Thaddeus. And I don’t know how much of my baby brother would survive that butcher.” There was a pause, but Castiel did not move. When Gabriel spoke next, his tone was wry. “Now me, my job here was obvious. Renegotiate the treaties and try to arrange an alliance marriage of our own with whichever one of you was single and amenable. Our sister Anna’s a little bit of a rebel and probably would have suited Dean well enough, but somehow I think Sam might like Castiel here a bit better.”

“And why should we entertain the idea of marrying my little brother off to Michael’s version of Ruby?” Dean asked, all skeptical sarcasm. Castiel controlled another flinch. Put like that, it did sound rather bad.

“Succession,” Gabriel said. “A marriage of state that can’t produce an heir is valid as a treaty seal, but not as a lock for succession to the throne of Ziemia or Tartarus, giving Sam the control. Even if you made Castiel Prince Consort, Sam would still have to take a second spouse to produce heirs or defer the succession to Dean’s heirs, if he ever has any, which keeps the throne of Ziemia in the House of Winchester. Castiel’s last in line for succession of Ter’d’Ange anyway, and it gets him away from Michael in a way that he can’t overtly protest, no matter how much he might complain about it later.”

“And why would Castiel agree to this?” Sam asked. There was a rustle of movement accompanied by a sound of protest from Dean, and then Castiel felt another’s presence in front of him. He looked up in shock when Sam actually dropped to one knee in front of Castiel to bring them closer to eye level. The Boy King offered a tired, somewhat rueful smile. “Please don’t misunderstand, I am grateful for your apparent change of heart in neither stealing Dean away nor attempting to turn him against me, but why bind yourself to me this way? You don’t even like me.”

“I do not know you,” Castiel pointed out, a little helplessly. He wanted to glance towards Gabriel for direction, but Sam’s eyes held him pinned. Bereft of direction, he struggled to explain himself and hoped it would be enough to support whatever plan Gabriel had in mind. “I... you love your brother above all else, enough that you willingly marched into Lilith’s realm to challenge her for his life, knowing what could happen if you failed. I can barely remember knowing the love of my brothers and sisters, and it never burned as the love between you and Dean does. So bright and pure, one would think your souls entwined.” He saw the surprise in Sam’s face and looked down again, chest clenching. “I know better than to expect you to love me like that... I will have to earn your trust first before I can even begin to earn your love, but the hope that I might, one day, earn even a fraction of that love you feel for Dean... it would be a gift beyond measure.”

Silence reigned for several moments. Castiel feared the drumming of his heart was audible to the entire room as he waited to see how Sam would respond to his awkward declaration. He didn’t dare look at Gabriel, and he couldn’t bring himself to look up at Sam or Dean. He went very still when one of Sam’s hands lifted and moved towards him, shivering when the long fingers brushed a bit of his hair behind his ear, the roughened pads grazing lightly over the ink-stained skin there.

“A love that must be earned is not love,” Sam said quietly, his voice very near to Castiel’s ear, making Castiel’s heart sink. Then Sam’s fingers were beneath his chin, urging Castiel to look up and meet his eyes. There was still so much weariness in his face, and yet his smile was warm and kind. It took Castiel’s breath away, more so than the words which followed. “Trust, you can earn with time, and your candor has earned you much of my trust already. As for my love, well...” he trailed off, eyes flicking down briefly, before meeting Castiel’s once more with a faint glint of animation that might have been called joy before he completely stunned Castiel by leaning in and dropping a brief peck of a kiss onto the end of his nose. “We’ll work on it together.”

And Castiel found himself sending up a quick prayer of thanks to a god he had long feared had forsaken him as King Samuel of the House of Winchester, ruler of Ziemia and Tartarus, helped him to his feet, because as playful as that one kiss had been, it had ignited a spark of hope in Castiel’s heart, and he knew that he would follow this Boy King willingly into Hell and back.


End file.
